How to Prevent Cockroach Infestation in the Bathroom

If you’ve discovered cockroaches in your kitchen you’ll have put measures in to eliminate them as quickly as possible. You want them gone for good not just relocated so it’s worth making sure that no other room in your home will offer an alternative residence.

Cockroaches are most commonly associated with kitchens but can be equally at home in bathrooms, their needs are fairly basic and all of them can be met in either room. Cockroaches need water, a place to hide away in the daylight hours and food. However, they can do without food for up to a month, and will eat pretty much anything, including soap and human skin cells.

Make Sure your Bathroom isn’t Cockroach Friendly

When you are dealing with these bugs you should first find out where they are coming from and then proceed on to doing the actual work.

Water

Check every pipe in your bathroom, if there are holes in pipes or dripping joints fix or tighten them. This will eliminate dripping water but you also need to make sure that the humidity levels are as low as possible. If you have poor ventilation, consider fitting an extractor fan and running it after every bath or shower. Make sure your family is well disciplined not to allow puddles of water to remain in the bathroom. If you keep plants in the bathroom make sure there’s no surface water on the soil, or puddles in the drip tray after watering.

Try to drive cockroaches away from the drains by pouring boiling water into them. The high temperature of the water might be enough to kill eggs or adult insects that are in the drains while the water flows. Do this often and it should have an effect.

Food

The next thing to turn your attention to is possible food supplies. If you feed pets in the bathroom, consider moving their food to another part of the house. Keep soap in a covered soap dish, empty rubbish bins daily. Keep baths, sink and floor clean and dry. Wiping the bath or sink dry after use may seem old-fashioned or obsessive but this will prevent both water or potential cockroach food being left behind. Use a suitable detergent to wash down every surface at least once a week.

Shelter

Next turn your attention to any cracks or crevices, you may find these around pipework or skirting boards. Seal everything. In extreme cases you may also need to lay traps or a roach killer to eliminate a severe infestation. If you need to use chemical solutions to the problem ask your Panther Pest Control officer to find the most suitable for your needs. Roaches are adaptable and can become resistant to over-the-counter insecticides so it’s worth making sure that the roach killer you’re using will be effective.

FAQs About Cockroaches

Are cockroach baits effective? Will they help me get rid of the infestation?

Most baits should help you control the cockroach population in your home, but baits alone will not fully eradicate the problem. You will need to combine it with another method of cockroach control.

Why do cockroaches come inside my house?

Most cockroach speacies actually prefer to live outside. They find a way to come into your home in search for water, foor and shelter. If they find what they are looking for they will stay and reproduce, and become an infestation for you to deal with. To keep your home safe from cockroaches, make sure it doesn’t provide a hospitable environement for them.